Review: Sony VAIO Y series laptop (VPCY115FX/BI)

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Sony’s Y series is the company’s new 13.3-inch notebook. It brings all the style you’d expect from a Sony laptop to the sub-$800 price point This is possibly by using the CULV [http://www.geek.com/articles/tagged/culv/] platform which has that affordable ultra-low voltage processor and the lack of an optical drive. The combination allows for computer that is thin, light, and good looking. We know that the CULVs being a lot of value, but Sony’s sleeker product comes in at more expensive that something like the Gateway EC1430U [http://www.geek.com/articles/chips/review-gateway-ec1430u-notebook-20100112/] or the Toshiba T135 [http://www.geek.com/articles/chips/review-toshiba-satellite-t135-laptop-2009115/]. We’ll see how Sony did with this attractive offering.

The Y series , specifically the VPCY115FX/BI that we tested, runs Intel’s Core 2 Duo SU7300 processor, has 4GB of RAM, and 320GB (5400RPM) of storage. It runs Intel’s integrate graphics and the GS45 Express chipset. The 13.3-inch display runs at 13666×768 and it LED backlit in order to maximum battery life. The OS is Window 7 Home Premium. On the exterior the Y series has a MS reader, a multicard reader, a wireless on/off switch, an ExpressCard/23 slot, three USB slots, ethernet, a Kensington lock port, VGA, HDMI, Firewire, and mic/headphone jacks. At 12.80″(W) x 0.93-1.26″(H) x 8.92″(D) and 3.9 pounds the system may not be very large, but it isn’t lacking anything (aside from the optical drive) that a typical user would be looking for.

The Vaio Y series’ hardware is just as good as we’ve come to expect from Sony; the sub-$1000 price tag did not negatively impact the design or build quality. The Y series has a sleek magnesium exterior, Sony’s often-used barrel hinge design (with power button on the right end and power connection on the left), and a spacious chiclet-style keyboard. The computer feels solidly built and it definitely a step up from the other CULV computers that we’ve testing the past thanks to large features, like the metal construction and quality feel of the hinge, to minor ones, like a door built into the ExpressCard slot (instead of a removable plastic insert). The battery slides into the back of the system in a standard fashion, and does not have a LED gauge on it. One of the few computers to come close to this construction quality in the price class is HP’s dv2 follow-up, the aluminum-clad dm3.

Inside the laptop there is a a 6-row isolated keyboard (just as Sony is known for) and a nicely sized trackpad. They keyboard has a nice action, which is not something you might expect from some which such limited height, and the regular spacing of the keys and predictably layout make for a smooth typing experience. We did have and isolated issue with a problematic scissor switch on the down arrow key. Past this the keyboard was very good and they trackpad large and easy to use. The palmrest is a nicely textured plastic, which is just another detail Sony took to make this seem like more than a budget system. The system has a webcam and a nicely integrated speaker bar above the keyboard.

Sony is known for their displays, and the Y series’ LED-backlit display is quite nice. It looks good for everything from desktop work to video playback and nothing about it suggests a cost-conscious system. It seems to look better than most screens at the lowest brightness levels as well. The included speakers get louder than most computers in the category but do lose quality at the top levels. The drop off in quality isn’t terrible but you’ll want to keep the volume limited for the best results.

On the performance front the Y series does well, thanks the SU7300 processor (Intel’s top-of-the-line CULV offering) and 4GB of RAM. As we’ve seen with the other CULV computer’s this system runs great for day-to-day tasks and while it’s not build for gaming it’s fine with most HD video and tasks that might trip up a netbook. Laptop Mag’s testing [http://www.laptopmag.com/review/laptops/sony-vaio-y-series.aspx?page=2] gave the Sony Y a small edge over most other CULV systems, which is great to see, but don’t expect the single digital percentage increase in performance to translate into a noticeable difference in real-life usage.

Battery life is important with highly portable systems like this one, and we know that the competition has been doing well in this area. Toshiba’s T135, in my testing was good for about 7-8 hours of dependable use. Sony claims 8 hours of battery life but our testing put the Y series at closer to 6 hours. It looks like there is a tradeoff for Sony’s nice display, quality sound, and sleek battery design. The $999 version comes with a higher capacity battery if you are interested in extending the life of your system a bit.

Sony’s Y series VPCY115FX/BI CULV laptop offers an interesting take on this emerging segment of affordable ultraportables. It’s more expensive than most of the competition and it doesn’t last as long on battery power, but it gets a significantly nicer exterior as well as some other noticeable perks. Users that only care about the fundamentals or that are concerned with price will want to go with HP, Asus, or Toshiba, but if the extras that Sony brings to the table with the Vaio models interest you then the Y series means that you can have a nice laptop (though one without an optical drive) for $800. It’s not the choice for everyone–it’s not even the one I would recommend–but it’s a solid CULV laptop that accomplishes most of what Sony set out to do.

Sony’s Y series is the company’s new 13.3-inch notebook. It brings all the style you’d expect from a Sony laptop to the sub-$800 price point This is made possible by using the CULV platform which has an affordable ultra-low voltage processor and lacks an optical drive. The combination allows for a computer that is thin, light, and easy on the wallet. We know that the CULVs bring a lot of value, but Sony’s sleeker product comes in at more expensive than something like the Gateway EC1430U or the Toshiba T135. We’ll see how Sony did with this attractive offering.

The Y series , specifically the VPCY115FX/BI that we tested, runs Intel’s Core 2 Duo SU7300 processor, has 4GB of RAM, and 320GB (5400RPM) of storage. It runs Intel’s integrated graphics and the GS45 Express chipset. The 13.3-inch display runs at 1366×768 and is LED backlit in order to maximize battery life. The OS is Window 7 Home Premium. On the exterior the Y series has a Memory Stick reader, a multicard reader, a wireless on/off switch, an ExpressCard/23 slot, three USB slots, ethernet, a Kensington lock port, VGA, HDMI, Firewire, and mic/headphone jacks. At 12.80″(W) x 0.93-1.26″(H) x 8.92″(D) and 3.9 pounds the system may not be very large, but it isn’t lacking anything (aside from the optical drive) that a typical user would be looking for.

The Vaio Y series’ hardware is just as good as we’ve come to expect from Sony; the sub-$1000 price tag did not negatively impact the design or build quality. The Y series has a sleek magnesium exterior, Sony’s often-used barrel hinge design (with a power button on the right end and power connection on the left), and a spacious chiclet-style keyboard. The computer feels solidly built and is definitely a step up from the other CULV computers that we’ve tested in the past thanks to large features, like the metal construction and quality feel of the hinge, and minor ones, like a door built into the ExpressCard slot (instead of a removable plastic insert). The battery slides into the back of the system in a standard fashion and does not have a LED gauge on it. One of the few computers to come close to this construction quality in the price class is HP’s dv2 follow-up, the aluminum-clad dm3.

Inside the laptop there is a a 6-row isolated keyboard (just as Sony is known for) and a nicely sized trackpad. The keys have a quality action, which is not something you might expect from such limited height. The regular spacing of the keys and predictably layout make for a smooth typing experience. I did have an isolated issue with a problematic scissor switch on the down arrow key. Past this the keyboard was very good and the trackpad large and properly textured. The palmrest is a nicely textured plastic, which is just another detail Sony took to make this seem like more than a budget system. The system has a webcam and an integrated speaker bar above the keyboard.

Sony is known for their displays, and the Y series’ LED-backlit display is quite nice. It looks good for everything from desktop work to video playback and nothing about it suggests a cost-conscious system. It seems to look better than most screens at the lowest brightness levels as well. The included speakers get louder than most computers in the category, but they do lose quality at the top levels. The drop off in quality isn’t terrible, but you’ll want to keep the volume limited for the best results.

On the performance front the Y series does well, thanks to the SU7300 processor (Intel’s top-of-the-line CULV offering) and 4GB of RAM. As we’ve seen with the other CULV computer’s this system runs great for day-to-day tasks and while it’s not built for gaming it’s fine with most HD video and tasks that might trip up a netbook. Laptop Mag’s testing gave the Sony Y a small edge over most other CULV systems, which is great to see, but don’t expect the single digit percentage increase in performance to translate into a noticeable difference in real-life usage.

Battery life is important with highly portable systems like this one, and we know that the competition has been doing well in this area. Toshiba’s T135, in my testing, was good for about 7-8 hours of dependable use. Sony claims 8 hours of battery life but our testing put the Y series at closer to 6 hours. It looks like there is a tradeoff for Sony’s nice display, quality sound, and sleek battery design. The $999 version comes with a higher capacity battery if you are interested in extending the life of your system.

Sony’s Y series VPCY115FX/BI CULV laptop offers an interesting take on this emerging segment of affordable ultraportables. It’s more expensive than most of the competition and it doesn’t last as long on battery power, but it gets a significantly nicer exterior as well as some other noticeable perks. Users that only care about the fundamentals or that are concerned with price will want to go with HP, Asus, or Toshiba, but if the extras that Sony brings to the table with the Vaio models interest you then the Y series means that you can have a nice laptop (though one without an optical drive) for $800. It’s not the choice for everyone–it’s not even the one I would recommend–but it’s a solid CULV laptop that accomplishes most of what Sony set out to do.